Mural – Leeds South Bank

In April 2017 my new mural ‘Renaissance’ was unveiled on Leeds’ South Bank. ‘Renaissance’ spans 32 windows across the historic Knight and Willson printworks, creating a total surface design of 1700 square feet. Like a giant comic strip, the artwork tells the story of Holbeck’s past, present and future. It’s also an abstracted map of the area. Wander from one end of the mural to the other and you’ll recognise local landmarks such as Bridgewater Place, the Candle Building, Temple Works, and the old Holbeck Railway Station.

You’ll also find allusions to ancient Egypt, the hanging gardens of Babylon, and the art of Renaissance painter Giotto – all with connections to Holbeck. There are plenty of hidden references to classical artworks, poems like Kubla Khan, and even tarot cards. The artwork is a giant narrative about cycles of rebirth – symbolising the way communities such as Holbeck rise, decline, and then get regenerated.

I originally hand-drew all of the artwork on paper – then scanned the drawings into the computer and re-traced them using Adobe Illustrator. Initially the mural was a single, unbroken picture, but I rearranged it into individual panels so that it could be printed onto 32 massive sheets of Dibond, many of them 9 feet x 6 feet in size. Jamie and Mike at Dock Street Signs (www.dockstreetsigns.co.uk) handled all of the printing, surveying and installation.